Secret of Horror Writer's Lineage Broken

[babylonsister]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20070317/books-joe-hill

Secret of Horror Writer's Lineage Broken

JERRY HARKAVY | AP | March 17, 2007 04:47 PM EST



PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Joe Hill knew it was only a matter of time before one of the publishing industry's hottest little secrets became common knowledge. He just wished he could have kept it under wraps a bit longer.

But when Hill's fantasy-tinged thriller, "Heart-Shaped Box," came out last month, it was inevitable that his thoroughbred blood lines as a writer of horror and the supernatural would be out there for all to see.

After 10 years of writing short stories and an unpublished novel under his pen name, Hill knows that the world is now viewing him through a different prism _ as the older son of Stephen King.

Hill, 34, took on his secret identity to test his writing skills and marketability without having to trade on the family name.

"I really wanted to allow myself to rise and fall on my own merits," he said over breakfast in this coastal city. "One of the good things about it was that it let me make my mistakes in private."

The moniker he chose did not come out of the blue. He is legally Joseph Hillstrom King, named for the labor organizer whose 1915 execution for murder in Utah inspired the song, "Joe Hill," an anthem of the labor movement. His parents, who came of age during the 1960s, "were both pretty feisty liberals and looked at Joe Hill as a heroic figure," he said.

"Heart-Shaped Box," a title drawn from a song by the rock group Nirvana, is a fast-paced tale of another man with dual identities. Judas Coyne, born Justin Cowzynski, is an over-the- hill heavy metal rocker with a strange hobby: amassing ghoulish artifacts.

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[tulsakatz]

1. wow! I had no idea his children were so talented.......

..although it doesn't really surprise me either.

[flamingyouth]

2. I'm reading it right now.

So far, so good. Quite scary. I might be staying up late tonight.:thumbsup:

[flamingyouth]

4. I finished it last night.

Very good. I was deeply engrossed in it at one point and the cat jumped up on the bed and just about scared the living daylights out of me. I liked all the heavy metal references too.

[RobertGregoryBrowne]

3. I have a feeling...

...his publishers knew it was only a matter of time as well. They no doubt banked on it. It makes for a more interesting story for Hill/King to be revealed in this way.

Comparisons are inevitable, but from what I hear, Hill seems to be holding his own.

[Momgonepostal]

5. I read the book a couple of weeks ago, and then saw this...

article in the next Sunday's paper. It was a surprise in a way, but then again, there were a lot of things about the book that reminded me of Stephen King. The creepy nature of the story for one, and its New England setting. Also the fact that the author was obviously a fan of rock music. Something also about the repeated references to "the night road" reminded me of King, not that I remember King using that phrase before, but the imagery seemed like something he would use, is that makes sense.

I enjoyed the book, though I wouldn't put in in my top ten of all time. I think this author is one to watch.